秩序愿景——美国战略中的日本与中国

对于秩序的追求一直是对外交家与政治家的挑战。经历了一个世纪的冲突、革命与战争向世界大国之问基于共同利益的合作模式的演化,才有了今天自由主义的国际经济与政治秩序。但是,国际体系并不是一个自我约束的机制,秩序一旦建立,它的维系需要富有重大责任的主要大国积极而充分地参与到这一体系的有效合作中来。     

The weight of history: child protection and parenting with a disability in 20th Century Iceland

ABSTRACT

This contribution focuses on four periods in Iceland, from the early twentieth century until the time of writing, in order to document and analyse the struggles of people with intellectual disabilities to marry, have a family and maintain custody of their children. Each period is linked to specific pieces of legislation that governed the bodies and lives of disabled people and reflected larger social norms concerning issues of family life and parenthood. An emphasis is placed upon the perspective of contemporary critical disability studies in analysing the historical development of this struggle, and the voices of those who experienced this struggle first-hand, drawn from a number of research projects conducted in Iceland. Our main contention is that the weight of history still comes to bear upon matters of parenting and family life, even in the most recent shift toward a human rights approach to disability. There remains a strong socio-cultural resistance toward parenting with an intellectual disability, rooted in the ideology of early twentieth-century eugenics. Our goal is to document the development of these phases throughout the twentieth century in Iceland in order to illustrate how older ideas and prejudices still inform contemporary child protection practices concerning parents with disabilities.     

Project Abstract: an Anglo-American intelligence operation in 1947 to recover guided weapon technical documentation buried in Germany

In early 1947, American intelligence organisations learned that there were hidden collections of technical documentation that pertained to World War II German guided weapon development that were not recovered by Allied investigators in 1945. A joint Anglo-American intelligence operation was initiated in February of that year, dubbed ‘Project Abstract’ by the Americans, to recover the caches. Project Abstract was a concerted effort by British and American scientific and technical intelligence experts to round up the last material remains of the World War II guided weapon programmes at the renowned experimental and testing establishments at Peenemünde in northern Germany.     

China’s Quest for Global Economic Governance Reform

Journal of Chinese Political Science - This paper attempts to characterize China’s approach to global economic governance during the Xi Jinping era, and to provide details on how it is...     

Muscle contraction during electro-muscular incapacitation: A comparison between square-wave pulses and the TASER(®) X26 Electronic control device

Abstract: Electronic control devices (including the Advanced TASER^® X26 model produced by TASER International) incapacitate individuals by causing muscle contractions. To provide information relevant to development of future potential devices, effects of monophasic square waves with different parameters were compared with those of the X26 electronic control device, using two animal models (frogs and swine). Pulse power, electrical pulse charge, pulse duration, and pulse repetition frequency affected muscle contraction. There was no difference in the charge required, between the square waveform and the X26 waveform, to cause approximately the same muscle‐contraction response (in terms of the strength‐duration curve). Thus, on the basis of these initial studies, the detailed shape of a waveform may not be important in terms of generating electro‐muscular incapacitation. More detailed studies, however, may be required to thoroughly test all potential waveforms to be considered for future use in ECDs.     

Factors associated with escalation and problematic approaches toward public figures

Detailed comparison of factors associated with abnormal approach to the prominent and with escalation from communication to approach has not hitherto been undertaken. This partially reflects the failure of individual studies to adopt compatible terminologies. This study involves a careful dissection of six public figure studies, three involving U.S. politicians, two Hollywood celebrities, and one the British Royal Family. Common findings were unearthed across six headings. Approachers were significantly more likely to exhibit serious mental illness, engage in multiple means of communication, involve multiple contacts/targets, and to incorporate into their communication requests for help. They were significantly less likely to use threatening or antagonistic language in their communications, except in those cases involving security breaches. These results emphasize the importance of integrating mental health findings and preventive measures into risk management. Approach should not be regarded as a single behavioral category and has multiple motivations. Future studies should adopt standard terminology, preferably taken from the general stalking research.     

Handle with care: engaging with faith-based organisations in development

Religious faith has always had an intense but uneasy relationship with development. Donors are currently seeking greater engagement with faith-based organisations (FBOs). This positive shift needs careful consideration. Faith can be a powerful – but flammable – fuel for change. FBOs are highly diverse and complex. Donors therefore need to handle them with understanding and care. This article outlines both the major concerns about faith in development and also the potential ‘value-added’ of FBOs. It charts growing interest yet residual ambivalence on the part of donors towards faith in development. It presents the practical challenges and suggests ways forward for both donors and FBOs.     

Survival of anesthetized Sus scrofa after cycling (7-second on/3-second off) exposures to an electronic control device for 3 minutes

Electronic control devices (ECDs) may eventually be deployed by the military in a manner resulting in longer exposures than those encountered during law-enforcement operations. In a previous study, 18 repeated cycling (5-second on/5-second off) exposures (within a 3-minute period) of anesthetized swine to an ECD (TASER International's Advanced TASER X26 device) resulted in leg muscle contraction, acidosis, and increases in blood electrolytes. In the current study, experiments were performed to examine effects of exposures to a different cycling rate (7-second on/3-second off), from a modified X26 ECD, on 10 swine (Sus scrofa), maintained on propofol anesthesia. In contrast with the previous study, a large number of animals (6/10) died immediately after the exposures. There were no major differences in pre-exposure blood factors from survivors versus nonsurvivors, with the exception of hematocrit and 2 isoenzymes of lactate dehydrogenase. It is doubtful that these factors would be useful in predicting survival after ECD exposure. Blood pH was significantly decreased after exposure, but (in animals that survived) subsequently returned to baseline levels. On the basis of the overall survival rate, further development of useful ECDs (for long-term incapacitation during military operations) may require consideration of longer pauses between repeated exposures over a 3-minute period.